JARVIS
by Tightropes to the Sun
Summary: When Bruce discovers the true meaning behind Tony's witty AI he realizes that 'Just a Rather Very Intelligent System' stands for something completely different and that there's a lot more to Tony than he orginally thought. Pre-Science boyfriends


**A/N: I own nothing, if I did Bruce and Tony would be together and would happily ever after. **

Since his time living with Tony, Bruce realized two things; first as much as people said Tony was a self-centered egotists maniac Bruce actually found that the majority of it was a mask to keep people away from him and second Tony cared deeply for all his inventions - DUM-E included but he had a particular soft spot for JARVIS.

They had a well developed relationship, Tony and JARVIS, in a way the AI was the conscious Tony claimed he didn't have, he was always reminding the billionaire to take care of himself and be careful with his careless antics.

In a way it was the way a parent should have behaved, maybe a part of Tony had known this when he constructed the intelligence unit or maybe he had done it subconsciously, completely unaware of the mental state of his pride and joy.

Whatever it was, Bruce was sort of grateful. JARVIS always reminded Tony that he could be harmed at any moment and that he was still human, when Bruce could no longer to do it himself.

Despite all of this, Bruce still didn't know the real reasoning behind JARVIS. He knew the playboy had programmed him to help him with his Iron Man suits but Bruce always suspected more. Their relationship went far past inventor and invention.

He wanted to desperately to climb into Tony's head and take the answers he needed because he knew he'd never give them up willingly. Getting Tony to talk was like talking to a brick wall, it was nearly impossible to get him to open up about his feelings.

He was a little scared, if not timid to ask his friend about why he had built JARVIS. Bruce was afraid to over step his welcome and make Tony feel uncomfortable. The last thing he wanted to do was lose the only good thing he had going.

He couldn't picture a life without Tony, it was sad really, how dependable he had become on him.

So he figured asking him a simply problem shouldn't have been that difficult but even trying to form the sentence in his head seemed nearly impossible.

He was certainly in the middle of making an herbal tea when Tony stabbed him in the side, "Hey Big Guy, you look great in the shirt. " he flustered, red tracing the back of his neck. Purple was the only colour Tony deemed 'sexy' on him much to his embarrassment.

"Thanks. " Answered Bruce, pouring the hot liquid into his cup with steady hands. "Can I ask you something, Tony?" He asked.

"Of course, "He flashed him a wide toothy smile, "As along you end in my bed afterwards. "

Bruce nearly choked on his tea, his blush deepening. "I don't think Pepper would enjoy that mental image."

Tony wound his arms around his waist, his chin resting on her shoulder. "I'm sure she'd enjoy it Brucey. " his voice was hoarse and filled with want but it brought a small smile touched his face none the less.

"I'm sure she would enjoy watching me turn into a giant green rage monster, "He countered, grinning as Tony scowled at him. "I don't think she'd want to have a threesome with him. "

"Well, no that privilege is only reserved for me and me only. "

Bruce hummed in the back of his throat and stepped out from Tony's embrace, "I seriously need to ask you something, "he stated, desperately hoping he kept the nervousness from his vocal cords.

Tony's golden orbs were calculating but reassuring. He folded his arms across his chest and let out a long breath, the arc reactor disappearing back into his Black Sabbath tee. "Ask away, babes. "

Out of habit Bruce twisted his hands together, averting his eyes from his friend to avoid watching his reaction. He didn't know really how to bring this up, he always, always got flustered around Tony, one moment he would have had a sentence formed in his head and the next when Tony gave him his award winning smile, it was gone.

He took in a deep breath, counted to three, and blurted out his question. "Why did you create JARVIS?"

He couldn't tell but from where he was standing it looked like Tony had frozen on spot, his face contracting with confusion. Before he could even make room to breathe, Tony was standing in front of him, his hand on top of his shoulder. "Bruce, you know why I created JARVIS. "He muttered, his voice grave.

"I know why yes, but not what drove you to go through with it. You don't do something without a reason. "

Tony's hand tightened on his shoulder, his eyes darkening a tad into the honeycomb shade that made Bruce's knees buckle. "Don't go there, Bruce. " His expression faltered as he spoke. He tried to compose it back but it was too late, Bruce had already seen.

"Go where?" tilting his head, Bruce tried to take the other man's hand but Tony pulled back and swept out of the room, leaving him alone with the timid beeps of DUM-E and Butterfingers.

* * *

He would apologize, after he gave Tony room to cool down. The last thing they needed was for the both of them to be angry and at the moment Bruce couldn't find the words. He didn't know what had upset him so badly, Bruce thought he had been delicate enough when he asked about JARVIS but apparently there was more going on.

Bruce brushed his nimble fingers through his hair and sighed softly. He would have to cut it soon, it was getting to long to manage probably. His last hair cut had been from a mother in Africa who was trying to pay him back for his services.

Of course at the time Bruce hadn't known she had cut in the fashion of her people and he had no choice but to cut it all off. Even if he was running around in third world countries he still had some dignity to support.

It now laid on top of his head in a knotted mess.

He wondered if Tony would want him to cut his hair. If he remembered correctly, and Bruce remembered everything, Tony had once said he liked his spirals. But it frustrated him to no end, it was much easier to blend in and hide when his hair was cut short.

Bruce was folding a few shirts when the door to his bedroom swung open and Tony appeared in it's threshold. His friend was leaning slightly towards the window with a brand of whiskey Bruce could identify but couldn't pronounce. His face was dark with the limited lightening of the hall way and his golden orbs were hallow and distant as if he were searching for something.

"Tony?" Bruce moved forward slowly, stopping a few feet before the other man. "Are you alright?"

Tony bobbed his head and stepped towards him, only to stop when he was inches from him. Bruce was curious to know what was going through his friend's head, his face was a set in stone, blocking everything out.

He felt the need to wrap his arms around Tony and tell him that everything was going to be okay but he remained where he was. "I'm sorry. " he blurred, his words rushed.

Had Anthony Stark actually apologized? Bruce had only known him from a few months but he was positive Tony Stark did not say sorry. _Ever_.

Bruce rubbed the back of his neck as a blush made its way to his cheeks. "Don't be sorry, I shouldn't have asked. " He mumbled back his reply softly but he was sure Tony heard it.

"You have no idea about the things I have to apologize for Bruce. "Tony sighed, now standing face to face with him. "I shouldn't have overreacted, I should have actually seen that question coming. "

"Why didn't you?"

"Ignorance is bliss. "

Bruce frowned, cupping Tony's face between his hands. "You can talk to me Tony, I'm not here to judge you. " he had the sneaking suspension that was half of the issue. "I don't have the room to judge you."

Tony's eyes closed and for a moment Bruce had thought he had fallen asleep. "He was my butler. " he muttered, regretting reforming his words. "Jarvis I mean. "

Bruce knew Tony was a billionaire but he sometimes forgot that he was actually_ rich_, which meant having all the perks and pleasures that came along with it. "You had a butler?" he blinked, confusion washing over his face.

"Yes, my parents employed him. His name was Edwin Jarvis, "Tony took a deep breath to collect his thoughts, his hands trembling. "My dad hired him to keep me quiet and entertained while he was working. " Bruce subconsciously ran his thumbs across Tony's cheek bones, encouraging him to continue. "He was my parent, Bruce, he taught me to ride a bike, helped me with my first engine and came to my first meeting with the principle. "

Bruce could only imagine an eight year old Tony sitting in a large wooden table with his arms crossed and scowl on his face while a taller man sat beside him trying to convince the principle to let him stay in school.

"He was the only family I had after my parents died, even though I was a complete dick to him, he always came back, he never left me for good. He knew when I didn't mean the things I said. He died a few after my parent's car crash- the house felt empty and lonely and before I knew what I was doing I had built an intelligence unit that responded just like Jarvis. The large mansion finally felt like home, it wasn't quiet or lonely anymore. "

It made sense now, why Tony had installed JARVIS to Stark Tower when they moved. "So **J**ust **a** **R**ather **V**ery **I**ntelligent **S**ystem is just a cover up?" Bruce asked, frowning as his hands dropped from the playboy's face.

"Pretty much, "Tony smirked, his eyes dancing with emotion, "I'm Tony Stark remember? I don't have a heart. "

Bruce couldn't help but shake his head at his friend. He knew Tony had a heart, it may be buried deeply in his chest and hidden away but Bruce knew it was there. "You have a heart, it's just artificially made and it glows. "

Tony made a face at him, running his hand over his stubble. "Enough of this mushy crap. Lets go out, Brucey. " he hooked his arm around his waist and pulled him along.

"Out where?" asked Bruce, blindly following the billionaire out of the tower.

"Somewhere I can get you easily drunk, then we can do drunk science. "

Bruce could only smile in response. He was right about one thing, there was a lot of things he didn't know about Tony but he hoped with time he could peel back all the layers and discover who Anthony Stark really was.

Until then all he could do was wait it out and enjoyed his life with Tony, because while living in Stark Tower that was all he could see, a life with Tony. He could see himself being happy here, he could see himself settling down and enjoying the rest of his days with the one person who didn't give to shits about what he could turn into.

They certainly were a pair, Tony and him. They both had daddy issues, were both considered genius, more on Tony's part, and they both had trust issues.

He ducked his head into his jacket to hide the blush climbing his neck and lent closer into Tony's embrace, a small honest smile resting on his lips.

For the first time in years, Bruce took Tony up on his offer without once stopping to think of the consequences. "I'd love to have dinner with you, just promise me something. " his throat dried and his heart rate speed up.

Tony stopped to look at him, his honey orbs intense and teasing. "Anything Bruce. "

Swallowing down the fit of nerves, Bruce met his friends gaze evenly and frowned softly. " Stay with me.."

He was almost frightened by the ghostly expression that passed on Tony's face but it was gone before he could even ponder it. Tony cupped his the side of his face with his hand and shook his head, answering with such softness Bruce could have sworn his heart melted.

"Always and forever, Bruce."

Despite the uncertainty glooming over him, Bruce believed him.


End file.
